IN BRIEF (Page 5)

Beijing

Watchdog releases accident findings

An explosion at a chemical plant in Fujian province on April 6 was caused by the poor quality of equipment, and the accident resulted from negligence, said Huang Yi, spokesman for the State Administration of Work Safety, at a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday. The investigation found that paraxylene, or PX, leaking from a crack in a poorly welded tube led to the blast. A boiler took in the flammable material and exploded. The watchdog dispatched four groups to inspect the country's 14 PX producers. All operations were said to be safe and stable.